Take Me Out To The Ballgame
by forensicsfan
Summary: COMPLETE NS Will Nick ask Sara out or will he strike out? Will he buy peanuts and cracker jacks? Or will he never come back? And exactly who is the home team when they're playing an exhibition game?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own them, I didn't create them, and I don't profit from them…I just like to play with them once in a while and if I could, I'd love to sit down and have a cup of coffee with George and Jorja.

**Author's Note:** This started out as a response to my own challenge and it sort of grew from there. Also, I started writing this before baseball season started...so imagine with me if you will that the Mariners aren't doing so badly.

* * *

"_And so you can see we've added a Mediterranean flair to our French Fries by drizzling them with a little extra virgin olive oil, sprinkling them with just a dash of sea salt and layering them with feta cheese and Kalamata olives." _Rachel Ray beamed on the TV as she described just another one the sides for her 30-Minute Meals 

As the program went to a commercial, Nick flipped the channel in the break room, smiling as Suzanne Sommers came on the screen for a commercial for the Thigh Master.

"_Just a few minutes a day and you'll work your way to thighs like this."_

As Nick seemed to be ogling her thighs he felt something slap him upside the head. "Ouch!" He glanced up to find Warrick turning the TV off.

The tall lanky CSI raised a single eyebrow at him. "I suppose _this_ fits into your master plan to get Sara to go out with you?" He gestured towards the TV.

Nick glared at him as he rubbed the side of his head. "Keep your voice down, man. She's not supposed to know."

"Well maybe that's the problem. You can't get a woman to go out with you if you never open your mouth." Warrick deadpanned him. He'd been at Nick for weeks to just ask Sara out and see what she said. He'd grown tired of Nick whining about how he never got to work with her anymore and how he never got to see her.

"I'm just waiting for the right moment." Nick gestured with his hands as he spoke, somehow trying to indicate that he didn't think there was ever going to _be_ a right moment. "Besides, it seems like she's never alone anymore if you get my drift."

Warrick smirked. "Sanders?" It was no secret that the lab tech turned CSI seemed to have a thing for Sara, regardless of whether he was currently dating another girl.

"He bought her a CD." Nick snorted out in disgust. He seemed intent on wallowing in his own pity party.

Warrick chortled. "He gave her an _American Idol _CD." And anyone who had spent any amount of time with Sara outside of work knew that her tastes were much more eclectic than that.

"You're kidding." Nick looked at him in disbelief. "What was he thinking?" Even he knew that if you wanted to buy Sara music you had to think a little deeper than that; pop music wasn't exactly her thing.

"Probably the same thing he was thinking when he bought her a pair of goldfish that he wanted her to name Greg and Sara." Warrick was having a hard time not laughing. "Mork and Mindy were both floaters the next day."

A flash of recognition spread across Nick's face. "So that's what he was talking about."

Warrick quirked a single eyebrow at Nick. "Just get off your lazy ass and do something before she gets desperate enough to actually go out with Sanders." They all liked Greg; they just didn't think he was quite right for Sara.

"Hey, I'll have you know that I have a fine ass and it's far from lazy." Nick retorted as he stood up from the couch and turned around, giving himself a pat on the fanny to emphasize his point. It was only at that point that he realized that Sara had just walked up and was stifling a giggle. "Uh, hey, Sar." Nick just hoped that she hadn't heard what Warrick said.

Sara smirked and then glanced over at Warrick. "Uh, did I come at a bad time, or did you two want to be alone?"

Warrick let out a soft chuckle. "I was just leaving. I've got to go check up on those alligator shoes in DNA."

Sara looked at him oddly. "Alligator shoes?"

"Things got a little out of hand at a 70's themed club and right now I'm betting on the disco ball being the murder weapon." Warrick explained as he turned and sauntered out of the break room.

Nick suddenly felt his mouth go dry as he regarded Sara just looking at him with an amused smirk. "Hey."

_Wow, Nick, did you think up that phrase all on your own? You're going to have to do better than that if you want Sara to go out with you. You might try listening to what she's saying instead of staring like an idiot._

"Nick?" Sara looked at him expectantly.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Nick swallowed hard.

Sara spoke slowly. "I said did you have some time to look something over for me? I need an extra set of eyes because I've been looking at these ink blot flash cards we found at our crime scene and I can't seem to make anything of them."

Nick snickered. "Don't you know that there's no _wrong_ answer with those things?" He knew that's not what she was talking about, but he couldn't resist teasing her.

She pursed her lips together and smacked him on the arm as she tried to keep from smiling. "I'll take that as a 'yes'." She turned and headed out of the break room with Nick on her heels.

After reviewing the flash cards, Nick came to the same conclusion that Sara had. "I really don't think there's anything on these, Sar." He glanced at the array of other evidence spread out across the layout table. "What else do you have?"

Sara smirked as she began to pick up the items one by one. "One solar powered calculator, three rolls of undeveloped film, a membership card to the Pauly Shore fan club, a couple of overdue bills, a couple of pink post it notes, $437 in cash, and one very compromising photo of our vic and a lady friend." She arched her brows as she handed over the last item, chuckling as she noted the perplexed expression on Nick's face as he viewed it from several angles.

He looked over at her as he tossed the picture back on the table. "I'm not sure I even want to know how they did that, but do you have any leads on who the woman in the photo is?"

"Looking for a date?" Sara quipped as a smirk pulled at her lips.

"Very funny." Nick rolled his eyes as he considered the evidence before them.

Sara shook her head. "No, Greg is working on that right now." She let out a snicker. "I scanned her face and blotted out the rest so he wouldn't be too distracted."

Nick snorted. "Good thinking."

_Ask her out you idiot. When are you going to have a better chance? You're alone, she's smiling, and she's been flirting. What do you have to lose? Uh, well, she might hate me after this, I'm not sure I could deal with that. I'd rather have her friendship than nothing._

"Nick?" Sara looked at him quizzically.

"Huh?" He glanced up wondering what she'd said this time when he zoned out.

"I was just wondering if you'd had some sort of epiphany." She gestured towards the evidence. "You were sort of spacing out."

"Uh, no, uh, sorry." He studied her for a moment and then took a deep breath. "Do you want to go out sometime?"

_There it was, I just blurted it out like a moron, and the way she's looking at me I'm sure she's going to say 'no'._

Sara was dumbstruck and she fumbled with her words. "Uh, I'm sorry, what?" She wasn't sure she heard him clear; what with her heart beating furiously in her chest at what she thought he'd said.

Nick tried to calm his nerves and repeated himself a little slower as he looked directly at her. "Do you want to go out sometime? On a date I mean." He felt as if the pit of his stomach had sunk into his shoes as he waited for her to say something.

Sara just stared at him for a long moment as his words registered and then when she did speak her words wouldn't quite come out at first. "A date? Us?" She noted the pained expression on Nick's face and didn't want him to get the wrong idea. "When?" A tiny smile began to tug at the corners of her mouth as her stomach seemed intent on doing the Tango.

It occurred to Nick that when asking a woman out on a date, it is always a good idea to have a plan in mind first; otherwise you end up looking like an idiot, which is exactly how he felt until he seemed to grab a plan out of mid-air. "Uh, this weekend. Rangers are playing an exhibition game in Vegas."

"Is that baseball?" Sara wasn't really into sports, it wasn't that she didn't like them, she just didn't have the time to get emotionally involved in whether they won or lost and so she didn't even bother.

"Yeah." Nick found himself amused at her lack of sports knowledge. "Uh, they're a major league baseball team from Texas."

"Of course they are." Sara giggled nervously.

Nick realized that she still hadn't told him either way if she wanted to go, and he sure as hell hoped that Warrick would be understanding and give up his ticket to the game. "So, will you go?"

"Uh, sure." Sara felt strangely excited at the prospect of going to a baseball game, something she'd done exactly once in San Francisco when she was a small child. Her grandfather had taken her to a Giants game and she'd fallen asleep in the middle of the seventh inning.

"Great." Nick couldn't keep the smile off of his face. "It'll be great, you'll see."

_Did she really say 'yes'? Sara Sidle is going out on a date with me? Ok, easy there; hand on the table; steady yourself before you pass out from excitement. Smile. She actually looks excited about going out with me. Alright, I still have it. The Stokes' charm even works on the lovely Sara Sidle._

"What time?" Sara tried to keep from looking too excited at the prospect of going out on a date with Nick, something that she'd wanted to do for a while, but never thought would actually happen.

"Five?" Nick reasoned that maybe they could go early and see a little batting practice.

"Ok." Sara was just staring at him, the perplexing case forgotten for the moment.

"I'll pick you up?" Nick wondered where he had suddenly found all of this super human courage from now that he was feeling confident and calm.

"Yeah, sure." She was grinning unapologetically now.

Warrick poked his head into the layout room, amused at the expressions on the faces of his two friends. "Did I come at a bad time?" He really needed Nick to help him with their case now that he had DNA results back.

Nick glanced over. "Uh, no."

"Nick was just helping me with something." Sara was still grinning and her face was starting to hurt.

"Ok, well, we got a DNA match and Brass is going to meet us at PD." Warrick gestured for Nick to follow him. As soon as they were out of earshot of Sara, Warrick glanced over and chuckled. "You finally did it, didn't you?"

"I'm not sure what you're talking about." Nick couldn't stop smiling.

"So where are you taking her?" Warrick lowered his voice a bit conspiratorially.

Nick suddenly looked a little apprehensive. "Uh, just how much do you want to go to that exhibition game on Saturday?"

Warrick's eyes widened. "You didn't?" He had been looking forward to this game for months and it was completely sold out.

"It was the first thing that came to my mind and it was out before I thought about the fact that the only ticket I had other than mine was yours." Nick hoped that Warrick would just give up the ticket without making a big deal out of it.

Warrick considered it as they walked out of the building towards his Denali before answering Nick. "You owe me, man. And don't think I won't collect."


	2. Chapter 2

"So there are _seven_ ways to reach first base?" Sara looked at Nick quizzically, not sure if she really believed him.

"There sure are." He grinned at her as he drove them towards the baseball park.

_I still can't believe she agreed to go out with me. I don't care what Warrick comes up with to pay me back for giving Sara his ticket, it was worth it. _

"Seven?" Sara was doubtful, she knew of only two.

"Yes, seven." Nick chortled out. He could tell that Sara wasn't sure if he was pulling her leg or telling her the truth.

"Ok, name them." Sara smirked, crossing her arms over her chest in challenge.

"Ok." He smirked back. "First you've got your hit."

_She looks so damn cute when she smirks like that. What I wouldn't do to be able to kiss it right off of her face. Hey, that makes eight ways to get to first base. Ok, easy now, Nick, we're only about fifteen minutes into this date; try focusing on something other than her lips. Ok, so maybe not her chest either. The eyes, yes, those brown eyes…I could get lost in those eyes._

Sara arched a brow at him. "Easy one."

"And then you've got your base on balls." Nick hoped that he could actually remember all seven legal ways to reach first base.

"Huh?" Sara looked a little confused.

"A walk…four called balls is a base on balls." Nick explained.

"Oh." Sara smiled, a little embarrassed that she hadn't known that a base on balls was a walk.

Nick chuckled softly; Sara's lack of knowledge about baseball was endearing. "A batter can also reach base on an error."

"Uh, huh." Sara was trying not to focus on how muscular his arms looked when he gripped the steering wheel.

_Is she checking me out? Uh, huh, she is. Damn, I think I'm smiling so much my cheeks are starting to hurt. Keep it low key, Stokes, you want her to say 'yes' to a second date._

"And I'm sure you're aware if you get hit by a pitch you automatically get to go to first base." Nick continued.

"Ok, that's four." Sara was keeping track, hoping that he thought that the smile on her face was due to their conversation rather than the fact that she was admiring the way his entire face crinkled up when he smiled.

"The next one is a little more complicated." Nick hoped he sounded intelligent; Sara was a brilliant woman and he wanted her to think he was smart. "When first base is open or there are two outs, and the batter is able to make it to the bag before being forced, if the ball is dropped or passed on the third strike it's called a pass ball."

Sara wasn't sure she completely understood it so she just nodded like she knew what he was talking about. "Interesting."

_She didn't have a clue what I was talking about, but she doesn't want me to know that. Damn she's adorable. I wonder if she'll let me kiss her sometime tonight. Focus, Nick. No not on her lips, on the road. Good thing I looked up just then, I might have missed the light turning red._

"The next one is what's called a fielder's choice." Nick continued, hoping that his voice sounded normal. "That's when a fielder chooses to make the out at another base rather than at first."

Ok, this one did make sense to Sara. "That's six." She arched a brow in challenge to see if Nick could name another.

Nick smirked at her. "And the seventh is when there is interference by the catcher, a fielder or an umpire." He looked triumphant and winked at her.

_And I'd sure like to tell her about the eighth way, but I think I'd rather just show her…maybe later. Well we are on a date, I'm sure I could at least hold her hand, maybe put my arm around her shoulder…then maybe a long kiss goodnight…or maybe I won't have to say goodnight. Whoa, Stokes! Do not go there. This is Sara, you need to take it nice and slow, buddy; half the lab would have your hide._

"So there are only seven ways?" Sara queried him curiously. She was trying to not look too obvious as she studied his profile.

Nick swallowed hard and nearly blurted out what had been on his mind, but caught his tongue at the last minute. "Well, those are the only seven _legal_ ways. Before the rules were changed you could actually steal first base from second."

"Why would you want to go backwards?" Sara had a perplexed expression on her face. "Isn't the point of baseball to get to home?"

Nick nodded. "Yes, it is. But let's say you've got a guy on second base, and another on third and then the batter hits a single; it's an easy set up for a double play and your runner from third doesn't score. But if your runner on second moves to first and the batter hits a single, it's much harder to get a double play, and then your man on third scores. Someone actually did that once, the guy is in the record books as being the only player to steal all four bases, and so they changed the rule."

_That was quick thinking to come up with that one. Baseball stats come in really handy sometimes. Ok we're at the ballpark; now if we can just find a parking spot._

As if reading his mind, Sara pointed. "Oh, there's a spot."

Nick had a mild panic attack for a moment as he steered the SUV into the parking spot.

_I didn't say that out loud did I? No. I'm sure I was just thinking it. Still, she's always had an uncanny way of being able to complete my sentences._

As Nick turned off the ignition, Sara felt a flurry of butterflies in her stomach. "So who are the Rangers playing today?" She reasoned that it was a simple question that should get Nick talking and detract from the fact that her mouth was suddenly feeling dry.

"Uh, the Seattle Mariners." He smirked. "They haven't had much of a really good team since 1995, but they do have Ichiro."

Sara quirked a brow. "Ichiro? What is that?"

Nick chortled out a laugh. "_He_ is a pretty damn good baseball player from Japan." He winked at her and then gestured towards the ballpark. "Let's go see some baseball."

"Ok." Sara laughed at how excited Nick was to see a baseball game, but there was a part of her that secretly hoped that he was excited because he was on a date with her. She'd not had the greatest of luck with men, especially since she'd moved to Vegas and she didn't want to get her hopes up too high that Nick would want to go out with her again.

Nick opened his door and rounded the SUV in an attempt to open Sara's door for her, but she was out before he had the chance, so he grinned at her and quickly gathered her hand in his.

_Ok, I'm holding her hand and from the smile on her face I'd say that she likes it. Looking good, Stokes. Oops, damn, that's gonna leave a mark. Just smile and act natural; she doesn't need to know that my shoulder hurts like hell from running into that sign. Just keep walking, shake it off, you can amputate it in the morning. Focus, man. Ask her a question or something._

"Uh, so how did your case end up? I mean the one with the ink blots." Nick smirked at her, trying to quell the nerves in his stomach that were generated by the feel of her hand in his.

Sara smirked back. "Uh, fine. We had quite a few suspects at first. Those undeveloped rolls of film had more pictures of him with other lady friends in similar situations."

Nick wasn't sure whether to laugh or to be disgusted at this guy and so he pursed his lips together. "Busy guy."

"Yeah, I think we counted about sixteen or seventeen different women…and one guy. He actually confessed." Sara informed him with a smile that had nothing to do with what they were talking about and everything to do with the fact that Nick's thumb was caressing the back of her hand.

"You've got to like it when they make it that easy." Nick smiled back, reluctantly letting go of her hand to get the tickets out.

_Is it my imagination or did she look disappointed when I let go of her hand? I guess I'll just have to grab hold of it again. Damn I want to kiss her._

Nick handed the tickets to the ticket taker and then took Sara's hand again as they made their way through the turnstile. As he glanced over at her she had a grin that matched his on her face. "Having a good time?"

"Yeah, I am." She was trying hard to pay attention to where she was walking rather than to keep looking at his lips, but more than a few times on the ride over to the ballpark she had wondered what it would be like to kiss Nick Stokes.

"I'm glad." As they headed towards their seats, they passed a concession stand and Nick gestured towards it. "You want anything?"

Sara hesitated for a moment. "Uh, do you?"

Nick chuckled softly. "Today is on me, this is a date, remember?" To emphasize his point he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

Sara couldn't hide the faint blush that crept into her cheeks, and she wasn't sure she wanted to either.

"Ok, so what do you want?" Nick began to propel them towards the concessionaire.

_I kissed her…ok, so it was just on her cheek, but I'm just testing the waters and things seem to be nice and warm. Maybe I should get her a Rangers T-shirt, I could buy myself one too and we could match…or maybe she'd think that was too cheesy. Well, I'll at least buy her one; I might just make her a baseball fan yet._

"Maybe some peanuts." Sara decided.

"Ok." Nick grinned at her and then as they got to the front of the line he placed their order. "Uh, we need some peanuts, some cracker jacks, a hot dog, two iced teas, one of those orders of nachos with no meat, and how about a Rangers T-shirt in a…" He glanced at Sara for a second. "…small."

Sara's eyes widened at him in disbelief. "Nick!"

"I just want you to have something to remember the game by." He reasoned, trying to swallow his smile.

"Well then I'm going to buy you one." She insisted, reaching for her purse.

Nick turned his attention back to the man behind the counter. "And throw in one just like it in a large…and don't even think about taking her money, it's all on me."

Sara looked flustered for a moment and then felt her cheeks getting warm as she realized she was blushing. She really wasn't used to someone being so excited about being with her; at least it had been a good long while since anyone had and it felt good.

She was trying to keep her smile at bay when Nick turned to face her while he waited for the man behind the counter to get their order together. "Remember, Sara, it's a date." He winked at her. "And I'm trying to impress you."


	3. Chapter 3

"A designated what?" Sara looked a bit perplexed as she tried to decipher the second word Nick had used in between the bites of hotdog he was eating.

Nick smiled sheepishly as he swallowed. "Designated hitter." He was pretty pleased with the fact that not only did Sara seem interested in the game, but she had changed into the Texas Rangers t-shirt he had bought for her as well.

_Does she have any idea how cute she is?_

"And why do they need one of those?" Baseball was turning out to be a bit more complicated than Sara had imagined, but the more Nick told her, the more interested she was becoming in the game, despite the fact that after two innings his Rangers were down by three runs.

"Uh, well actually only the American League has the designated hitter; the National League's pitchers bat." Nick explained.

"So the Rangers are in the American League then?" Sara queried him as she popped a nacho into her mouth.

As Nick watched her lick her lips, he felt suddenly jealous of her tongue and forced himself to look at her eyes. "Yeah."

_How have I worked with her this long and not been completely distracted by her? I mean we've worked crime scenes and she's been to my house numerous times; damn I want to kiss her._

"What about the Mariners?" Sara understood why Nick was a fan of the Rangers being from Texas and all, but she had to admit that she really like the Mariner's uniforms better, their mascot was cuter and the fact that they were in the lead didn't hurt either.

"They're in the American League too." Nick continued.

_I wonder what she'd do if I put my arm around her; she let me hold her hand earlier and that went pretty well._

"What happens if an American League team plays a National League team?" It seemed to her that the rules were a little odd given that she could have sworn at some point in time other than the World Series the two leagues played each other. She'd heard Nick and Warrick mention inter-league play in the break room and it occurred to her that this little designated hitter thing might complicate the rules.

Nick was impressed. "Well, it all depends on who the home team is." He smiled at her and feigned a stretch as he rested his arm on the seat behind her.

_That went pretty smooth and I would be willing to swear under oath that she smiled when I did that. Could it be that Miss Sara Sidle might have wanted to go out with me for a while?_

"If the American League team is hosting the game, then they play by their rules and the National League team gets to use a designated hitter. If the National League team hosts then the American League team has to put their pitchers behind the plate for a turn at bat." Nick continued to explain, trying not to focus too much on Sara's lips.

Sara pursed her lips together, trying to keep her smile from getting too big. "So how do they decide who the home team is during an exhibition game?" She glanced over at Nick and found herself looking into his eyes, her smile immediately widening at their close proximity.

"Uh, I guess someone just decides; I'm not sure how they do it." He grinned at her, his hand coming to rest on her arm and his fingers unconsciously caressing her arm.

The sound of a bat cracking against a baseball pulled their attention back to the game just in time for Sara to dodge a fly ball. Her eyes were a little wide and she let out a nervous laugh as she found that she had scooted into Nick to avoid the ball which the person sitting behind her ended up catching.

_Well that was convenient, I think I like having her this close and if there weren't so many people, I'd be tempted to kiss her right now._

"You ok?" Nick smiled at her, letting out a nervous laugh of his own.

"Yeah." Sara relaxed back into her seat, but couldn't help but smile at the fact that Nick had his arm securely around her shoulders.

"Good." Nick glanced back at the game and as he did, his eyes widened. "Six runs! When did that happen?"

_When did it get to be the fourth inning? Ok, I must really be distracted if I missed the Rangers getting clobbered by the Mariners. Of course, I'm not sure that I could have found a better distraction than Sara._

"Are you sure you want to stay loyal to your team?" Sara had a smirk on her face. "I mean, the Mariners _are_ looking pretty good, and not that _you'd_ notice, that Bret Boone is pretty cute." It was true that the Mariner slugger, who was currently at bat, was rather good looking, but Sara really wanted to tease Nick.

Nick snorted out a laugh. "Oh, is that how it is?" He could clearly tell she was trying to bait him, and he reasoned that he was going to play along.

"And did you see their mascot?" Sara's smirk was quickly turning into a smile regardless of her efforts to the contrary.

"A moose." Nick retorted. "What does a moose have to do with a Mariner? Ever see a moose on the open sea?"

_I could just forget about the crowd and kiss her right now…but I sort of want our first kiss to be memorable…and there is the danger of being interrupted by another foul ball…well maybe later._

"He's cute." She pursed her lips to keep from laughing. "I mean I understand how a horse relates to the Rangers, but the moose _is_ much cuter."

"So you'd go out with him if he asked you on a date then." Nick teased.

Sara giggled. "Are you jealous?"

"No." Nick smirked.

_Who am I kidding?_

Sara smirked back at him. She'd always enjoyed the flirty banter between them, but knowing that they were on a date and the fact that Nick had his arm around her was sending flurries of butterflies to her stomach.

_I wonder if I should wait until the end of the date before I ask her out again…it's not like we won't see each other at work…well since the damn team split I don't see her nearly enough…but I really want to go out with her again, and maybe in not such a public place depending on how that kiss goes later._

"He's not really your type." Nick commented as he pointed at the moose who was dancing on the top of the dugout. He pulled her a little closer as he whispered in her ear. "Besides, I never really envisioned you being with a guy named 'Moose'."

Sara couldn't hold back her giggles.

"Now a guy named 'Nick' on the other hand; that's a good solid name." He puffed his chest out a little bit to emphasize his point.

Sara glanced over at him and impulsively reached up and cupped his cheek, leaning in and planting a kiss on his cheek. "You're cute."

_Ok, I am definitely going to kiss her when I get the chance, and I'm not sure I'm willing to wait until the game is over…I don't even care if the Rangers lose…ok, I care a little, but a loss is worth it if I get to kiss Sara._

Nick quirked an eyebrow, not quite able to hide his grin. "Cuter than the moose?" She'd brought it up and he wasn't quite ready to drop it.

Sara giggled as she nodded and then leaned in and whispered conspiratorially in his ear. "You're even cuter than Bret Boone."


	4. Chapter 4

The seventh inning stretch had just finished up and the Rangers were still trailing the Mariners, now by a miserable 13 runs. Nick had his arm unapologetically around Sara's shoulders and he couldn't resist reaching up and playing with her hair now and then, smiling at the faint blush that colored her cheeks each time he did it. His mind was most definitely no longer on the game.

_Well at least one good thing out of this game is that things seem to be going pretty damn well with Sara. I don't think that even the Rangers could pull off a comeback from this far behind. I suppose it just gives me that much more reason to give Sara my undivided attention._

Sara turned towards Nick with a slightly panicked expression on her face as she pointed at the jumbo-tron. "Uh, what are they doing now?" The strains of the song 'Love Shack' began playing over the sound system as the inning ended.

Nick looked perplexed. "I dunno, but it looks like they're doing some kind of fan participation thing." He couldn't have been more correct, and a flash of panic ran through him too as he realized that the camera was panning the crowd for couples to find the best kiss. Apparently the winning kiss won some sort of prize. Nick had mixed feelings. On the one hand, he wouldn't mind kissing Sara sooner rather than later, but on the other hand this wasn't exactly how he pictured their first kiss.

_C'mon, pass us by...well, then again, if I get to kiss her now, she might let me kiss her a few more times before the game's over and then there's later...keep the mind on track, Nick. Sara isn't the kind of girl that sleeps with a guy on the first date...of course, it's not like we don't know each other…'i' before 'e' except after 'c'...uh, when two vowels go walking, the first one does the talking...ok, keep the mind clean...we're in public._

Sara nervously nibbled at her lower lip as the song continued and the camera kept zooming in on different couples. She didn't really realize that she had scooted closer to Nick and that he was absentmindedly playing with her hair. And then there they were, up on the jumbo-tron for the whole ball park to see, and the crowd chanting for them to kiss. Sara was nearly mortified as she realized that the entire ball park was going to witness their first kiss.

_Ok, man, you've got to kiss her...as if that's a problem...just make it a good one, you never get a second chance for a first kiss..._

Nick slowly leaned in and softly captured her lips, his fingers sliding into her hair as he cupped her cheek.

_I could die a happy man...her lips are so soft...oh, that's it Sara, where the hell did you learn to kiss like this?...Damn girl! You've got an audience, keep the hands PG, man, keep 'em PG..._

Sara had a grin on her face as they finally broke off the kiss, and the crowd seemed pretty pleased too, given the applause. She wasn't sure exactly what to say to Nick and so she just kept smiling.

Nick was grinning like a fool himself. It had definitely been quite the memorable kiss and now all he wanted to do was kiss her again, which he did after only the briefest hesitation. When he pulled back he let out a soft laugh as he made a confession to Sara. "I've wanted to do that all night."

Surprise flickered in her eyes momentarily and then she made a confession of her own. "Me too." Sara wasn't sure she was going to be eating anytime soon given the scores of butterflies in her stomach. This date was turning out far better than she'd anticipated.

Nick leaned in and stole one more quick kiss before gathering her hand in his and lacing their fingers together. "Despite the total and complete slaughter of the Rangers by the Mariners, I'm having a great time."

Sara giggled. "I'm having a pretty good time too." In truth the fact that Nick was more excited about being with her than disappointed that his team was loosing in such a deplorable fashion made her heart flip.

_I think I could almost give up being a Rangers fan if it meant that I could hang out with Sara like this all the time…I bet our kids would look cute…Oh, hello! Where did that come from? When did we go from first kiss, hey we're on a date to talking about 'our kids'?...If she knew what I was thinking she'd run across the field and never speak to me again…_

Nick stole a glance at Sara, taking time to study her profile and finding as she turned towards him and smiled widely, revealing the gap in her front teeth, that he wasn't sure he'd ever felt quite this way before.

_Still, I think I could see myself growing old with her…pace yourself, buddy, it's your first date and you don't even know if she's going to want to go on a second date._

Sara nudged him. "Hey, your friend the Moose is headed this way." She arched her brows at him and a smirk flitted across her face.

"Really." Nick smirked back, glancing over his shoulder as the Seattle mascot made his way down the steps towards them. "I wonder what he's over here for."

Neither one of them had noticed that their picture was up on the jumbo-tron as the winners of the kissing contest and as the Moose approached, it was apparent that he had something under his arm. Several people around them pointed up at the screen and it was only then that Nick and Sara realized just why the Mariner Moose was coming to them.

_I guess I'm better than I thought…we won a kissing contest with our first kiss…I bet with a bit more practice we could win a few more things too…Nick, man, get the mind out of the gutter. Damn it's a good thing that Sara can't read my mind…well at least I don't think she can read my mind…although sometimes I wonder._

"We won." Sara couldn't stop smiling as she took the large envelope from the Moose who was doing his best to get her to stand up and give him a kiss on the cheek.

"What did we win?" Nick looked at her quizzically, not quite paying attention to the Moose who was motioning both of them to come out into the aisle for a close-up for the jumbo-tron.

"I don't know." Sara pulled Nick by the hand into the aisle to stand next to the Moose for a photo op. After getting Sara to kiss the Moose on his fuzzy cheek, he let them return to their seats.

"Open it up." Nick urged her not so subtly.

_This may be just the ticket…I mean we won this together, we'll have to use this together…a guaranteed second date._

"Golf." Sara wasn't sure what to think. She'd never gone golfing before, and she wasn't entirely sure she was interested as she handed Nick the gift certificate to a local golf course.

He noticed her skeptical expression and smiled at her. "It could be fun…have you ever golfed before?"

"No." She reasoned that she just might be willing to try it; baseball had worked out pretty well and it would give her more time to spend with Nick; that is if he wanted to spend it with her.

"Well I have, and while I'm not the greatest, it is fun. I think we should try it together." Nick was prepared to ask her out again and he reasoned that this was the perfect opportunity.

_I could teach her to putt, and well that would require me to stand really close with my arms around her…I think I'm going to like playing golf with Sara._

"Ok." Sara agreed. "So I guess it's a date then." She was more than agreeable to having a second date with Nick; she just hoped he wanted to go out with her again.

"It's definitely a date." Nick grinned at her and then leaned in and softly kissed her.

_I am the luckiest guy in the world right now…a second date with Sara Sidle. Greg is gonna be jealous._


	5. Chapter 5

Nick couldn't remember seeing the Rangers look this bad in a long time. The final score was Seattle 15 – Texas 1. Despite the outcome of the game, Nick had a huge grin on his face as he left the ball park holding Sara's hand.

_My team might suck, but Sara's into me…I might just have to tell her that there really are eight ways to first base… especially since we've already gone there…I wonder how she'd feel about second…rounding third might be pushing it…but I might just push it…Stokes! Get a grip._

"I had a really good time." Sara couldn't stop smiling as she glanced over at him. She felt a flip in her stomach as she considered that when he'd kissed her she'd had thoughts that had gone well beyond that kiss.

"Me too." Nick was thoroughly enjoying himself and he really didn't want the date to end.

"I'm sorry your team lost…" Sara had to restrain her smirk at how badly they'd lost.

"It's only baseball." Nick hoped he sounded convincing. He knew that she knew that baseball was just one of the sports that he was insanely crazy about. When he wasn't watching the Discovery Channel, it was a sure bet that he might be watching some sort of sporting event on TV, when he had the chance to watch it these days that is.

Sara giggled. "C'mon, Nick, I know you're disappointed…they really played badly."

They were standing near his SUV now and as he unlocked her door for her he smirked. "Ah, ah…correction, Ms. Sidle…Seattle played exceptionally well and the Rangers…well, their pitchers were having an off night." Nick knew he was rationalizing, but he didn't care.

"They stunk." Sara smirked back at him eyeing his lips.

"Words, Sara, just words." He winked at her and then leaned in and softly kissed her, glad that they didn't have an audience save for the other people making their way to their cars. He was a bit surprised by the intensity that she responded with and his mind started running wild.

_I really want to know where she learned to kiss like this…I wonder if she has any idea what this is doing to me…oh, well apparently my hand has a mind of its own because her ass feels pretty damn good through those jeans…Girl, you did not just do that…I'm pretty sure that's permission to steal a base…Public, we're in public…get in the Denali…_

As they pulled apart they were both grinning like fools and Nick was the first one to speak. "So, uh, are you hungry?"

_Good thinking...food is always a good way to make a date go longer...of course you could always ask her back to your place, she seems to really be enjoying kissing and if you were alone in a more private place who knows where things might go..._

"I could eat." Sara was sure that at the moment she could do a lot more than eat, but she didn't want to rush into anything. Certainly she'd known Nick a long time, but this _was_ their first date and she didn't want him thinking that her typical first date behavior was to end up in bed by the end of it, but she also wasn't quite ready for the evening to end either. "We could get take out and head back to my place and watch a movie or something."

"Uh, yeah, that's a great idea." Nick didn't want to get his hopes up at her invitation; but the word 'something' was ringing in his ears.

_She invited me over, she's not ready for this to end either and from the way she was just kissing me I might be staying over...Ok, Nick, don't assume, this is Sara...hitting a homerun on a first date with her shouldn't be something you're thinking about. Just hold the door to the Denali open and then walk slowly, act naturally...slower man...ok, climb in behind the wheel...you're smiling a little too much...ok, ease it into drive and just go slow._

"So what do you want to eat?" Nick queried her.

"Uh, how about Thai? There's a place around the corner from my apartment that should still be open." Sara considered that Nick could still get his meat and she could have one of her favorite dishes.

"Thai it is." Nick grinned at her as he headed in the general direction of Sara's apartment.

_I'm not sure how this is gonna work...all I really want to do is kiss her...ok, so if I'm being honest, I really just want her...but can she ever kiss...if she's that talented with her lips I wonder what else she's good at...Ok, you did not just think about that...get your mind on something else while you're driving man...Moses supposes his toes are roses, but Moses supposes erroneously...­_

"Thanks for inviting me, Nick. I had a great time." Sara couldn't keep the smile off of her face and at the moment she couldn't get her eyes off of Nick's physique.

"I'm glad you came...if you hadn't I don't think I could have survived that loss...besides, I don't think Warrick would have been willing to help win that gift certificate." Nick smirked at her, trying to keep things light.

"He doesn't really seem like your type." Sara smirked back glad that the flirty banter they'd always shared seemed to be flowing quite naturally despite the fact that she really wanted to kiss him again.

"Yeah, I always like my dates to be at least a _little_ shorter than me." He winked at her as they came to a red light.

"I not _that_ much shorter than you." Sara retorted with a smile.

"That's a good thing...easier to kiss you without getting a kink in my neck." He grinned unabashedly at her.

Sara blushed a little at his comment. She wasn't embarrassed and didn't really feel awkward, but the newness of the whole thing was causing great flutters in her stomach and she was sure that with a few more kisses like the one they'd shared in the parking lot that she would go into sensory overload.

Nick pulled up in front of the Thai restaurant only to find that it had already closed. He quirked an eyebrow at Sara. "Plan B?"

"Uh, I guess we could just see what I have in my cupboards...except I haven't been to the grocery store recently." She wasn't really all that hungry; she just wanted to spend more time with Nick.

"Pizza?" Nick reasoned that there should be plenty of pizza joints that delivered well into the night, especially in Vegas.

"Sure." She smiled back.

_Plenty of time for a little making out before the pizza comes and then who knows..._

A few minutes later they pulled into Sara's complex. They walked hand in hand to her door and once they were inside, the pizza was forgotten as Nick leaned down and kissed Sara. As he pulled away he had an impish smile on his face. "Did you know that that was the eighth way to get to first base?"

Sara snorted out a laugh. "Leave it to you to come up with a baseball reference."

"Well it's true." He chuckled softly as he followed her over to the couch. "We've been to first base a lot tonight." He was sure that he was being forward, but so far Sara hadn't given him any indication that she wasn't ok with it.

"And I suppose you think that second base is next?" Her expression held a challenge.

_Think fast man, what does that look mean? This could be the difference between going home a happy man and just going home..._

Nick arched a brow at her and slid his arms around her waist. "Not necessarily. Each at bat is different...you can't assume since you made it to first base the last time that you'll even get on base next time...a good batter has to size up each pitch as it comes over the plate and swing at just the right time or he might just strike out...and even if he connects with the ball, he might just get tagged out rounding third."

Sara smiled at him. She liked the fact that he was clear about what he wanted but seemed to be telling her that he wasn't going to push her.

"Did you know that baseball is the only sport where the offensive team doesn't control the ball?" Nick looked into Sara's eyes as he rested a hand on her hip.

"Hmm, that's interesting." Sara was eyeing his lips and wondering why he wasn't kissing her.

_She wants you man...look at the way she's looking at you...and don't forget what she did in the parking lot...she wants you..._

Nick leaned in and kissed her, pulling back just a bit to whisper. "So how am I doing?"

"You never know when you might hit a homerun..." Sara whispered back as she pulled him back into a hungry kiss.

_**The End**_

**Author's Note:** Thanks to all my readers and reviewers. This was sort of a whimsical idea and I'm considering a sequel around the sport of golf, however, real life may dictate otherwise for a while since I'm in the middle of moving and changing jobs and have another story going right now too.


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